I read the post about new Fresh Cherries at Wal*Mart. They are a good buy that is for sure. I had an interesting problem with them the other day. Please post if you have had a similar experience as I have had.
BACKGROUND: I have roads made out of the Walthers Brick street system, as well as their Concrete streets. I also have streets poured out of dental plaster, Hydrocal, and WS street system. They are all finished with airbrushed acrylics, allowed to dry, then given the Dullcote protective spray. They were all finished several years ago so they are good and dry.
PROBLEM: When I went to pick up the autos in downtown Dayton to dust the Walthers Brick Street system the Fresh Cherries tires were stuck to the street. None of the others did this and I have several brands. There were no Fresh Cherries on the Walthers Concrete street (darn). None of the Fresh Cheeries stuck anywhere but the Walthers Brick Street System, None of the other autos with the soft tires stuck anywhere, not even to the Brick Street System. I now know right where to put the Fresh Cherries back on the bricks as there is four really little tire patches where each one was setting.
Since I don’t push the cars around and go VROOM VROOM as I do the trains and go WOO WOO sometimes,(My attempt at a joke by the way) it isn’t a real problem. I am not saying I won’t buy and more Fresh Cheeries, but I won’t be putting any more on the Walthers Brick Street in Dayton Ohio that is for sure!
Hey Paul - As a matter of fact, I have experienced that ! All my roads are mostly masonite or styrene painted with latex paints and have not exhibited this … however, I do have a brick paved lot surrounding my train station that I sealed with an acrylic clear.
Initially I noticed the cars did exhibit some tackiness when removing them (not stuck, just tacky). I just assumed at the time, it was a rather humid summer and the acrylic just wasn’t setting up very fast. Well, two years later, it’s still the same thing - just a slight tack when I move them. Actually, it works quite well for keeping the parking lot organized without the cars getting bumped all over the place !!!
I have had the same problem with the Fresh Cherries tires, but not on a street plastic. When I test loaded the first group of my cars onto an Accurail autorack the same thing happened. I had left the cars on the decks overnight, and when I came back the next day I found a couple of them really bonded to the rack deck- so much so I needed to pry them off with a screwdriver. I have not had that problem with any other brand of car that I’ve loaded on an Accurail deck- but I have a feeling that it has something to do with the composition of the tire being “spongy” or soft. After I picked them off my autorack deck I could see a slick puddle like stain on the deck where it looked like the wheel had perspired some substance onto the deck, in addition to that the wheels developed a flat spot on them where they had been sitting on the deck- very odd to say the least.
It seems some of those tires are made of a strange rubber compound. I noticed if you dulcote a car, it won’t dry on the tires. I tried to paint some of the tires with Testors rubber colored paint and stayed a sticky, messy goo.
Sulpher. Too much in the rubber and it can react with the water in the air slowly making a nice little compound called sulphuric acid. You just didn’t hear it from me because I’m not going to be called as expert witness in civil court.
